10.10.10.

This particular date will not occur for another 100 years so we should make it special. Many of my friends are celebrating this day as turkey day with family and friends gathering to feast on a special Thanksgiving dinner. It is also a time of reflection where we can count our blessings and many gifts which we take for granted most every day.

Personally I am most thankful for family and good health. Our family and extended family are blessed with good health mostly and are able to live a full life with all its value. Today we shall gather at my daughters home (daughter #1) and experience that special feeling when you are together as a family. As we are spread around the province is not always possible for us all to get together but we must count the ones who are there and remember the ones who are missing.

This has been a particularly difficult year for me with the death of several close friends and health issues for others.This can be expected at my age but it doesn't make it any easier. This week Theresa and I have been busy putting our yard in order for the winter and packing for our time down south. The beautiful colours of the leaves and bushes tell us it is time for the migration to take place and the tree full of birds yesterday was a sure sign.

It has been a great year for butterflies and the Monarch is starting to form groups on their way to Mexico. We have seen huge flocks over the years on our way to Florida. We were lucky this year to be home to four hatchings of house and song sparrows. Our bird houses were full all summer and provided us with entertainment.

One incident was of special mention when I heard Doris and Theresa shouting about a large bird by our fish ponds. It was a huge Sand Hill Crane standing over our goldfish ready to have a colourful snack when the shouts scared him away. It was such a large bird that it had trouble taking off over our tall Maple Trees in the back yard but it managed and we still have our little fish. They stay in the ponds over winter and manage quite well.

Mother nature this year provided us with bumper crops of vegetables and fruit. Flowers and trees flourished and we reaped the benefits of her bounty and beauty for which we are thankful.

There are so many things we can be thankful for it would be impossible to state them all. We should be thankful for the young men and women who are in far away places defending our country's orders to participate in wars. I will be thankful when the world finds other ways to solve their differences like maybe having our leaders duel or something.

Finally, after all this rambling, I feel blessed to live in a country with all its faults and to feel free to make my own path to peace and happiness in our family circle.